This one captivating picture drew our attention and instigated a two week adventure to Northern California. We left Tuesday, October 2, to discover some of the wilder parts of Northern California— but not without visiting our favorite Cork & Plough restaurant in King City along the way.

Arriving in Pleasanton and walking downtown to admire well preserved and beautiful old buildings around the town. Naturally we had our excellent dinner with wine

The next morning we noticed the chilled air but plenty of sun to keep us warm. Our next reservation was two days at  Lake Almanor. We drove down to the store- and surprise, surprise, the person who greeted us and  informed us that the restaurant and bar facility had just closed and would only be open on weekends—but, of course, the lodging was open.

Hardly any people around and having to drive ten miles to the nearest restaurant was about it for food options, and almost made us leave early- but the beautiful trees and scenery changed our minds. We ended up having a lovely dinner and enjoying some nice company.

Two days later we drove to Lassen Volcanic Nation Park; it’s actively steaming. And to find our way through and arrive at the summit we had to go around, and around, and around up to 8500 ft. altitude. Below we saw devastation–a forest that was wiped out over 150 years earlier by a volcanic eruption.

On the way to Mt. Shasta we drove through beautiful forests and made a stop at the dramatic Burney Falls.

Up next was Mt. Shasta resort for a two day stay. The cabin that we reserved was beautiful–overlooking the lake below. Only once did I see a skunk, lucky he scurried away. Our first dinner in their restaurant was excellent, but the views distracted us from eating our food!

We ate dinner there twice because of the dramatic views. (We needed many paper napkins…)

Down the hill from our cabin was the tip of the lake and on the second day we trekked along the hiking trail that encompasses the lake—okay, we didn’t walk the entire 7 miles.  We followed a few others to a handsome pedestrian bridge swatting a few non-biting insects along the way.

And on to Eureka, a lovely old town rehabbed beautifully–what a joy to see the older buildings painted and renovated.

This picture was taken by a friendly couple who emailed it to us when I told them that my camera was unusable. We all looked in awe at this beautiful “house”, formerly the Carson Mansion and now a private club.  We drooled but decided not to buy.

To the left and behind is Sky Lark Shores resort.

WWe were looking for a room for a three day stay and found a beauty in Lakeport.

First look at the picture and know that we had planned to stay for three days on Clear Lake. What a wonderful setting for two tired travelers. All the rooms faced the water with a bush on the left side of our room and with an overhang in case of rain. It was a two bedroom with a living room and kitchen but still beautiful. We walked down to the water, passed the picnic tables, to look out at the waves. Then the news. The gracious owner told us and everybody else that we had to check out the next morning because the electricity was going to be shut off at the time for the whole area; sad. Since we had planned to stay three days in Sacramento with our kids we let them know the change in plans and they rearranged their schedules to accommodate us. Sweet family and we had a lovely time with them. Even our hotel, Med Park, rearranged their schedule to accommodate us and we thank them profusely for that. Finally 3 days in one place!